Despite being a federal issue, the possible closing of the U.S. Export-Import Bank is becoming more than Capitol Hill chatter for Texas.

The U.S. Chamber of Commerce and Texas Association of Business today made the case for the bank's vitality and importance to the Dallas area. Texas has led the country in exports for more than half a decade, buoyed by $22 billion in financing from the bank between 2007 and this year. For the Dallas area, the bank has supported more than 9,000 jobs.

“This issue is a critically important one,” Bill Hammond, president of the Texas Association of Business said at the conference. “It’s about jobs, jobs, jobs. If we don’t reauthorize the Ex-Im, little companies to big companies will suffer.”

The possibility of an Ex-Im shut down has led business owners, especially those supporting small enterprises, to plead with Congress to sustain the bank, and in turn, their livelihoods. David Eckert, vice president of finance for Air Tractor, said his company turned to Ex-Im after no other commercial bank would give loans to foreign customers to buy Air Tractor products. Since receiving Ex-Im support, the company has added 100 jobs, and through the bank, Air Tractor can give foreign customers five-year financing to buy its products.

“This is an issue that goes even to the small communities,” Eckert said. “We’ve been exporting actively for about 20 years. When we started, 10 percent of sales were going internationally. As we’ve grown, we’re now at 50 percent internationally. If the Ex-Im Bank goes away, 20 percent of our workforce is at risk.”

Commercial banks are advocating for Ex-Im’s extension. Institutions such as Amegy Bank offer scustomers financing to support exports, and Ex-Im helps those banks share risk. If Ex-Im goes away, the risk of lending spikes, financing disappears and Amegy and similar banks loose customers and capital, advocates said.

““Ex-Im support is critical to our exporting customers but those loans only represent about half of what we lend directly to these customers,” said TJ Raguso, executive vice president for Amegy’s international division. “We’ve never had a loss in capital when working with Ex-Im Bank.”

Ex-Im has been renewed 12 times since 1934, but is set to expire at the end of September if not reauthorized by Congress. In the meantime, the U.S. Chamber and other groups plan to meet with leaders and push the issue. Many are already taking steps like publishing editorials and fueling grassroots campaigns.

“We’ll be ramping up our efforts as members of Congress are home from session,” said Stefanie Holland, the chamber’s director of international policy. “August is a huge opportunity for businesses to connect with their representatives.”